My husband and I took our 3 boys (ages 14, 12, 10) on the 4-hour Gold Claim Adventure with Rattlesnake Randy and had an awesome time. We spent nearly a week in Rapid City doing all the common tourist attractions but this was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. We loved getting to actually pan for gold just like the old timers! Rattlesnake Randy has a wealth of knowledge and we learned so much from him about what the original miners went through to get the gold! We ended up getting some gold flakes and were so thrilled (plus you get to keep it!). Rattlesnake Randy is very entertaining with that crazy rattlesnake hat and fun personality! We booked our adventure before coming to Rapid City by emailing Randy and he quickly responded to get things set up. We brought extra shoes that could get wet and muddy as we knew we wanted to get down and dirty with the gold. The claim area itself is in the Black Hills and is BEAUTIFUL and so peaceful. There werent any bugs and more sand than mud which was nice. I could have spent the entire day there! I highly recommend the 4-hour Gold Claim Adventure.Sincerely,The Nugget family ;)

We had a great time panning for gold with Randy. This was a surprise for my boyfriend on our anniversary, Randy helped me keep the secret as we coordinated plans. Randy took us to his own claim and we spent the afternoon digging up gravel and dirt then sifting that for gold. We ended up with a nice nugget and a bunch of flakes! Aside from the loot, we had a wonderful time and enjoyed Randy’s company and the peaceful shady spot on the creek. Randy sends you home with not only gold but also a bag of your concentrate. We had lots of garnet, magnetite and hematite that we plan to sort and create something with! If you want to play in the dirt, have lots of fun, and find some gold give Randy a call!

Dale & Vicky had such a wonderful experience with Rattlesnake Randy. The next time were in SD, we will definitely come see him again. Very fun and informative. A must for anyone visiting.Thank you Randy for making the end of our trip so memorable! It was a pleasure, beyond measure!

My family and I spend a morning panning gold, and it was an experience we will never forget! Kids, too, from 8-12 were with us. We dug the gravel and went through the whole process of cataloging, sluicing, and panning. In the end, we found gold! It was a good time, and a slice of history and geology all rolled together in a few short hours. The area was fairly shaded and cool as well. Overall, a great time for all six of us.

Today, was the best day Gold Panning with Rattlesnake Randy! He is one of a kind.Originally, we had planned to go to Big Thunder Mine and we’re so happy with our decision to learn from Rattlesnake Randy instead. (Nothing against BT)He was an amazing teacher, so knowledgeable, full of fun stories and sharing his skill from the most genuine place. He truly has a heart for sharing his passion and watching the excitement when GOLD is found! Not only is his heart in the right place but the prices show just that. He wants all peoples to be able to experience the hobby he loves so much.This is a must for any and all ages!

Im an avid outdoorsman and hobby prospector and geologist and wanted to learn more about how to sluice and locate and correctly pan and classify. This is everything I could have asked for and more! Extremely well priced, super friendly, full of willing information free of charge. Overall great time! And we found some gold!

If you’re looking for a great way to get outdoors and have an adventure on an authentic South Dakota gold claim, book an outing with Rattlesnake Randy! This guy goes above and beyond to make learning about panning fun for all ages. He has a great sense of humor and anyone can tell he loves what he does. Can’t wait to book another trip next year!

This claim adventure was a fantastic experience for my daughters 13th birthday. Rattlesnake Randy helped make the experience very memorable. He is full of fun facts and jokes. Also, try his panning experience at the Fort Hayes chuckwagon dinner attraction. Thats were we originally met him. Both experiences are well worth their weight in gold

Very fun. Randy made the experience fun with his humor while educating us on the process. It was cold when we went but still very enjoyable. We found gold! Thanks for the fun time Rattlesnake Randy!

Our family of 5 had a great time panning for gold with Rattlesnake Randy! Randy is a real character, very fun and funny. He’s one of the best gold panners, and is a good teacher, too. While in the Black Hills you have to try your hand at panning for gold, and with Randy you’ll definitely enjoy the experience (and find some gold too)!

Randy really knows his stuff when it comes to anything about gold panning in the Black Hills. Hes one of the few folks who will take you out to an actual gold claim spot to pan for gold. Best of all, you keep all of the gold you that you find whether its in one of his troughs or out at his land claim. A truly authentic experience; Highly recommend!

Hello! I drew a picture of Rattlesnake Randy’s gold claim! I had so much fun when I went there and I hope you enjoy the picture! I even have Rattlesnake Randy (as a rattlesnake) in the drawing! Hope you like it!

Our family group of 8 had Great Adventures w/Rattlesnake Randy this summer! Randy was very personable & professional. We learned about the history of gold panning in the Black Hills, science, physics, work ethic, & team work. We worked so hard digging, hauling, pouring, sliding, picking, tossing, & dumping. Randy has a great sense of humor & has the ability to make every age group comfortable. Everyone had a job & everyone was hungry for GOLD!! Did we find any gold?! YES we did!!! It was the highlight of our Black Hills vacation. If youre looking for a unique & FUN experience, this IS IT!! As Rattlesnake Randy would tell you, youll never find gold, if you dont look. GO LOOK!!!

Didnt find enough to keep us from going back to work BUT we had an amazing time, learned alot, and definately will recommend and do again!! It exceeded our expectations in every way!

What a great day today.I found the most amazing gold miner to show me how to panhandle for gold the way the original gold miners did. With the exception of the newer version sluth pan he showed me how pan for gold. It was amazing how fast the 4 hr adventure went. It took place in the Black Hills on one of his mining claims in the National Forest.What we found and processed out of the gravely soil may not look like much but Rattlesnake Randy was impressed. At 1 point he even shouted out my name so I could see the large sliver of gold the creek water had exposed.I was so fortunate to find some one so passionate about his craft and his desire for you to do well.Kudos Rattlesnake Randy.Being in the creek water pan handling and also digging up buckets of dirt to see what little golden treasures may unfold was by far my highlight adventure while in the state of South Dakota.

This was an amazing experience! I cant wait to do it again someday. It helps you realize how hard the work for their gold.

Had a great time gold panning with Rattlesnake Randy. Great guy, very helpful and makes sure you get the authentic gold panning experience. Gives you all the tools and knowledge, gets you set up for success. My son and I found nice gold!! Highly recommended!!

Had a great time. True gold panning made it a great experience for adults and kids. Even left with a little gold. Definitely recommend if you want to try something authentic. Rattlesnake Randy’s has the perfect personality to give all a great time.

This was a highlight of our trip! We found a little gold to take home and made great memories! Rattlesnake Randy is a great teacher and even showed us a couple extra pieces of South Dakota history! I would recommend this 100x!! Thanks so much for the memories!!

Rattle Snake Randy has a pure passion for gold mining . We did the 1/2 day mining and it was very fun and very informative. He’s a excellent tour guide and you can fully see he loves what he does. Our kids absolutely loved it and they were 3&5 .I Highly recommend it !!!Thanks againAdam RinasSisseton SD

One of the activities high on our priority list this trip was to pan for gold in a stream. We found only a handful of tourist sites that provided an ‘authentic-like experience at a mock mine guaranteed to yield a few flakes of gold’, but we wanted a truly authentic experience (not a guarantee to get a few specs of gold that are pre-planted in a bucket of gravel).Enter Rattlesnake Randy. I found his contact info at about 5am on the last day of our trip … I reached out via email about the possibility for a last minute panning trip and got a response back within minutes … he was more than happy to accommodate us!When we first met Rattlesnake, he seemed a little out of place in the modern day … a bearded, somewhat eccentric man just as you would picture an old 49-er but enthusiastic about teaching people the whole process of how to pan for gold. Rattlesnake made it clear that we would spend the next 4 hours panning for gold in the same way that it was done by the old 49’ers (though with somewhat better tools).So how much was the value in the gold we panned? Priceless … in the great family memory we now have! Thanks again to Rattlesnake Randy!

It was a great time we found some flakes and a small nug and some garnet. Id highly recommend if you are in the blackhills and want to pan for gold the real way you should do it with rattlesnake randy.

Rattlesnake Randy’s 4 hour gold panning adventure was excellent! We found lots of gold and he was great with our three kids. It was a perfect authentic gold panning experience that was a lot of fun and very informative. Highly recommended!!

Randy is the real deal and made sure we had a fantastic time while out on our panning adventure. His knowledge and passion for what he does really comes through, we would go again in a heartbeat!

My daughters (12 & 9) and I went out on a guided gold panning adventure with Rattlesnake Randy. The drive was awesome! We got a free view of Mt Rushmore from National Forest land in the Black Hills. It was cool to see the mountain and faces from a local’s perspective. Then we continued into the hills until we arrived at one of Rattlesnake’s gold claims. We learned about the history of gold panning and claims and was given a great tutorial on how to find and identify good gravel to classify, how to actually classify the gravel, and how to use a sluice box to find GOLD! The weather was perfect (July) and the water was crystal clear and cool. After running some buckets of dirt over the sluice box, we started to find gold. After we were done running all of our dirt, Rattlesnake finished up the adventure by giving a great lesson on panning the gold. When it was all done we left with two great nuggets and a good amount of flakes. On our way out Rattlesnake guided us to two early 20th century structures: a mining shaft and a lean-to structure that was probably used as a shelter for miners in the area. It was a great trip and I would suggest it to anyone who visits the Black Hills.

Had a great time . I got a lot of gold. Time went fast

Best authentic gold panning experience! Rattlesnake Randy is funny, friendly, knowledgeable, and a ton of fun! A must do when in South Dakota!

He will take you out to a real gold claim in the Black Hill Mountains. He will teach you how to dig, classify, sluice, and pan your dirt to get the gold out. He is a super nice guy that like to joke around. You can tell he loves teaching people how to find gold. He supplied all the equipment needed. You will need a vehicle that can handle some offroad action. I have a Kia Sportage, so anything with more ground clearance than that should be fine. It is hard work so bring clothes you dont mind getting wet and dirty. Also bring young kids to dig for you lol. Of course he cant guarantee gold, but chances are you will find some. We found 1 small nugget and 15 flakes. This was the highlight of our trip in the Black Hills. We also got some garnets. He can also help you find some leavarite, just ask him!

If you are looking for a fun, entertaining and unique adventure in the blackhills make sure to book a claim tour with Rattlesnake Randy. He will teach you all you need to know about finding gold and how to pan it when you get it out of the ground.

Rattlesnake Randy was an awesome miner to show us the ropes! He was super informative and a blast to hang with!

Ran into rattlesnake randy down on the stream, all i can say is a great guy all around did amazing with our two younger children and even showed us what we could do to produce more gold and places to look to find better gold!!! A true gold panner showed us how fast he could pan and get gold, did not hesitate to show or give hits tips or tricks hes learned over several years his knowledge is worth more than the gold youll ever find!!!!!!!! thanks randy from the family in the red ranger!!!

My wife and I were on vacation and looked up black hills gold panning. We ended up at Fort Hayes gold panning with a guy named Rattlesnake Randy. This guy (looked crazy with a rattlesnake head on his hat) was nice and very knowledgeable about the geological makeup of the Black Hills and fascinating history of the area. We bought Rattlesnake Randy’s Pay Dirt Bag that had a few dozens nuggets of real Black Hills gold. This was exactly what my wife and I were looking for. Thank you Rattlesnake Randy.

We Had a great time learning how to pan for gold!!

Rattlesnake Randy thanks for sharing the joys of mining, saw milling and blacksmith stories and skills too

Me and my dad went and Ill remember it forever.

Experience of a lifetime! Had a wonderful time meeting and learning from Rattlesnake Randy.